Return of the Seal
by Spenstar
Summary: The King of Games sees his old friend Mai, only for her to hell him that the evil Seal of Orichalcos is back. Oneshot fic but I'm considering a followup.


After a long day of dueling, public appearances including at Duel Academy and the new memorial, and hanging out with his friends, the King of Games anticipated a nice, relaxing night's sleep when he walked in the front door to his home. Instead, he found an old friend sitting on the couch, a serious look on her face as if she was waiting for him with terrible news. There had been a lot of terrible news lately, what with the accident that killed the King's greatest rival and friend, the discovery of the "Spirit Rings" that could trigger shadow games without a millennium item, and so on. The King of Games walked inside and sat next to his friend, anticipating the worst.

"Mai. It's been a while."

"Too long, in fact."

"I can't say I'm not happy to see you, but I fear the worst. Did Joey get banished to the Shadow Realm, or die? Did something happen to Pegasus?"

"Worse even than that. The impossible happened. I dueled someone who used a card that I thought was destroyed years ago."

The King noticed that Mai was holding a card in her hand. She looked at it, indicating that the card she held was the one she spoke of.

"You don't mean-"

"I do." She flipped the card around to reveal the Seal of Orichalcos. The King's eyes suddenly filled with fear, for he knew that card too well. He remembered when he first held it, years ago, and played it in a moment of desperation and weakness. Then everything changed. He remembered being consumed by hate and anger, being manipulated by that card, selfishly sacrificing the spirits of his monsters for power. He remembered losing the only being on earth who understood him the day he played that card, and spending a lifetime trying to gain back what he lost. It seemed like he was only just able to free himself fully from the Seal's binds when he saw it again. That card loomed over him like a dark secret. That card was _evil_.

"But-but that card was destroyed! Dartz was set free, the Leviathan vanquished! How could this happen?"

"I don't know." Mai sighed with sadness, for she too knew all about the Seal's corrupting influence. "This guy just... played it. His monsters got the symbol and the boost, but he didn't. When he played it, the crest appeared on his forehead and then vanished."

"When he lost..."

"The Seal vanished from the field. He didn't lose anything. I don't even think he was that corrupted by the card. But he was afraid. He gave The Seal to me after I told him the story about the King of Games being destroyed utterly by it. He said that this is the last copy of the card left. I just wonder why it exists at all."

The King wondered the same thing, until another memory hit him. It was a conversation with the recently freed Dartz.

"My dearest friend, now that I am free from the Seal's influence, I must explain this to you," Dartz had said, "I have destroyed all but one of the copies of the Seal of Orichalcos in the world. If the last one is destroyed, the Orichalcos will be set loose and the Beast will rise once again. The last copy of the card - I have locked away the darkness within. It's a normal Field Spell now, but it can be awakened when used with an Orichalcos Stone. My friend, I am gone, and I must count on you to do one final thing for me: make sure that never happens!"

Mai was about to tear the Seal in two. "Stop!"

"Why?"

"If you do, the Seal's true power will be set free. He didn't lose his soul in that duel. The card is powerless now."

"Then keep it. The King of Games is the only person I can entrust this kind of card to, who can keep it safe."

"I can't bear to look at it after all that it did to me, Mai. I just... can't. Host a low-profile local tournament and give it to the winner. And make sure the winner's someone who would never have the corresponding stone. If we can keep the two apart, we'll be okay."

"Will do. I'm sorry I had to show you this, my friend." She hugged him tightly. It was an embrace of mutual understanding over the situation the two had been dealt."

"Good luck in the dueling, Mai."

"You too. Any plans tomorrow?"

"Not really. I'll have a lot of time to think. I think I'll pay another visit to the Yugi Moto memorial tomorrow. It's the least I can do. He and Atem saved my life several times and made me into the man I am today. He was my greatest rival, and was like a brother to me. I miss him so much."

"So do I, Raphael. He'd be happy to know that, of all the duelists in the world, you rose to the occasion to carry on his legacy."

"Yeah. Good night, Mai."

"Night."

Mai got up and left, leaving Raphael, the Fourth King of Games, all alone with his Guardians - and the Dark Magician, in memory of his friend, the Third King of Games, Yugi Moto.

Yugi had been taken by the Seal too once. Raphael remembered that. He saved Atem's life. Just like he saved Raphael's.

Raphael barely got any sleep that night.

THE END


End file.
